Free ski day? Yes, please

Event sponsored by GCI to celebrate new cell tower serving ski area patrons

To celebrate the completion of a new cellphone tower at Eaglecrest Ski Area, GCI is sponsoring the “GCI Day on the Mountain” Saturday, Feb. 22 and offering up a free day-long lift pass for anyone who brings at least one canned food item for donation to the Southeast Alaska Food Bank. Season pass holders who donate a can of food will receive a voucher to the mountain’s dining facility, the Eaglecrest Grill.

GCI recently completed construction of a new cell phone tower, expanding to GCI and ACS customers what has traditionally been limited service at the ski area’s base. In addition, a number of TurboZone Wi-Fi hotspots at the ski area and within the lodge will provide eligible customers with free high-speed Internet access. Any individuals roaming on the service will also have access; AT&T and Verizon wireless customers will not be able to use the service.

According the Jeffra Clough, sales and marketing director at Eaglecrest, the tower was completed near the end of last year and has benefits that extend beyond streaming video.

“There are definitely safety benefits to mountain users — in the past there just wasn’t service on certain parts of the mountain,” she said.

The expanded service will aid search and rescue efforts and general communication between patrons. On the business end of things, the new tower offers a bit more security for things like phone service and Internet; last year Eaglecrest had no phones for an extended period of time due to a landline outage.

“We’re thrilled to ... provide these services to our neighbors at Eaglecrest Ski Area,” Paul Landes, GCI Senior Vice President and General Manager of Consumer Services, said in a press release.

Vouchers provided to those donating canned goods on Saturday are only valid that day. That includes any vouchers for free food at the Eaglecrest Grill.